The Charles Dickens Museum is an
author's house museum at 48
Doughty Street
Doughty Street is a broad tree-lined street in the King's Cross district of the London Borough of Camden. The southern part is a continuation of the short John Street, which comes off Theobald's Road. The northern part crosses Guilford Street an ...
in
King's Cross, in the
London Borough of Camden
The London Borough of Camden () is a London borough in Inner London. Camden Town Hall, on Euston Road, lies north of Charing Cross. The borough was established on 1 April 1965 from the area of the former boroughs of Hampstead, Holborn, and St ...
. It occupies a typical
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
terraced house which was
Charles Dickens's home from 25 March 1837 (a year after his marriage) to December 1839.
Dickens and Doughty Street
In the nineteenth century, it was an exclusive residential street and had gates at either end to restrict entry and these were manned by porters.
Charles Dickens and his wife
Catherine Dickens (née Hogarth) lived here with the eldest three of their ten children, with the older two of Dickens's daughters,
Mary Dickens
Mary "Mamie" Dickens (6 March 1838 – 23 July 1896) was the eldest daughter of the English novelist Charles Dickens and his wife Catherine. She wrote a book of reminiscences about her father, and in conjunction with her aunt, Georgina Hogarth ...
and
Kate Macready Dickens being born in the house.
A new addition to the household was Dickens's younger brother
Frederick Frederick may refer to:
People
* Frederick (given name), the name
Nobility
Anhalt-Harzgerode
*Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670)
Austria
* Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198
* Frederick ...
. Also, Catherine's 17-year-old sister
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
moved with them from
Furnival's Inn
Furnival's Inn was an Inn of Chancery which formerly stood on the site of the present Holborn Bars building (the former Prudential Assurance Company building) in Holborn, London, England.
History
Furnival's Inn was founded about 1383 when Wi ...
to offer support to her married sister and brother. It was not unusual for a woman's unwed sister to live with and help a newly married couple. Dickens became very attached to Mary, and she died in his arms after a brief illness in 1837. She inspired characters in many of his books, and her death is fictionalized as the death of
Little Nell. Dickens had a three-year lease (at £80 a year) on the property. He would remain here until 1839 when he moved to Devonshire Terrace. He upscaled to grander homes as his wealth increased and his family grew. However, Doughty Street is his only surviving London house.
The two years that Dickens lived in the house were extremely productive, for here he completed ''
The Pickwick Papers
''The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club'' (also known as ''The Pickwick Papers'') was Charles Dickens's first novel. Because of his success with ''Sketches by Boz'' published in 1836, Dickens was asked by the publisher Chapman & Hall to s ...
'' (1836), wrote the whole of ''
Oliver Twist
''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', Charles Dickens's second novel, was published as a serial from 1837 to 1839, and as a three-volume book in 1838. Born in a workhouse, the orphan Oliver Twist is bound into apprenticeship with ...
'' (1838) and ''
Nicholas Nickleby
''Nicholas Nickleby'' or ''The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby'' (or also ''The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, Containing a Faithful Account of the Fortunes, Misfortunes, Uprisings, Downfallings, and Complete Career of the ...
'' (1838–39) and worked on ''
Barnaby Rudge
''Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of Eighty'' (commonly known as ''Barnaby Rudge'') is a historical novel by British novelist Charles Dickens. ''Barnaby Rudge'' was one of two novels (the other was ''The Old Curiosity Shop'') that Dickens publ ...
'' (1840–41).
The Museum
The building at 48 Doughty Street was threatened with demolition in 1923, but was saved by the
Dickens Fellowship
The Dickens Fellowship was founded in 1902, and is an international association of people from all walks of life who share an interest in the life and works of Victorian era novelist Charles Dickens.
The Dickens Fellowship's head office is based ...
, founded in 1902, who raised the
mortgage
A mortgage loan or simply mortgage (), in civil law jurisdicions known also as a hypothec loan, is a loan used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or by existing property owners to raise funds for any pu ...
and bought the property's freehold. The house was renovated and the Dickens House Museum was opened in 1925, under the direction of an independent trust, now a
registered charity
A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good).
The legal definition of a ch ...
. The house was listed in 1954.
Perhaps the best-known exhibit is the portrait of Dickens known as ''
Dickens's Dream
Robert William Buss (4 August 1804 – 26 February 1875) was a Victorian artist, etcher and illustrator perhaps best known for his painting ''Dickens' Dream''. He was the father of Frances Buss, a pioneer of girls' education.
Early career
Bo ...
'' by
R. W. Buss, an original illustrator of ''The Pickwick Papers''. This unfinished portrait shows Dickens in his study at
Gads Hill Place
Gads Hill Place in Higham, Kent, sometimes spelt Gadshill Place and Gad's Hill Place, was the country home of Charles Dickens, the most successful British author of the Victorian era. Today the building is the independent Gad's Hill School.
...
surrounded by many of the characters he had created. The painting was begun in 1870 after Dickens's death.
Other notable artefacts in the museum include numerous first editions, original manuscripts, original
letters by Dickens, and many personal items owned by Dickens and his family.
The only known item of clothing worn by Dickens still in existence is also displayed at the museum. This is his Court Suit and sword, worn when Dickens was presented to the Prince of Wales in 1870.
Gallery
Image:Dickens dream.jpg, ''Dickens's Dream
Robert William Buss (4 August 1804 – 26 February 1875) was a Victorian artist, etcher and illustrator perhaps best known for his painting ''Dickens' Dream''. He was the father of Frances Buss, a pioneer of girls' education.
Early career
Bo ...
'', by Robert William Buss
Robert William Buss (4 August 1804 – 26 February 1875) was a Victorian artist, etcher and illustrator perhaps best known for his painting ''Dickens' Dream''. He was the father of Frances Buss, a pioneer of girls' education.
Early career
Bo ...
Image:Dickens Museum -- Desk 21.jpg, Study
Image:Dickens Museum -- Kitchen 17.jpg, Basement kitchen
Image:Dickens Museum -- bedroom 25.jpg, Mary Hogarth
Mary Scott Hogarth (26 October 1819 – 7 May 1837) was the sister of Catherine Dickens ( Hogarth) and the sister-in-law of Charles Dickens. Hogarth first met Charles Dickens at age 14, and after Dickens married Hogarth's sister Catherine, Ma ...
room
Image:Dickens Museum -- Dining Room 03.jpg, Dining room
Image:dickens-living-room.jpg, Dickens's living room
Image:dickens-chair.jpg, Dickens's chair
Image:midshipman-dickens.jpg, The "Little Midshipman", referred to in ''Dombey and Son
''Dombey and Son'' is a novel by English author Charles Dickens. It follows the fortunes of a shipping firm owner, who is frustrated at the lack of a son to follow him in his footsteps; he initially rejects his daughter's love before eventual ...
''
Image:seymour-headstone.jpg, Headstone of illustrator Robert Seymour
See also
*
Dickens family
The Dickens family are the descendants of John Dickens, the father of the English novelist Charles Dickens. John Dickens was a clerk in the Royal Navy Pay Office and had eight children from his marriage to Elizabeth Barrow. Their second child and ...
*
Dickens World
Dickens World was a themed attraction located in the Chatham Dockside retail park in Kent, England. It was themed around elements of the life and work of Charles Dickens. After a soft opening in April, Dickens World officially opened to the pub ...
*
Tavistock House
Tavistock House was the London home of the noted British author Charles Dickens and his family from 1851 to 1860. At Tavistock House Dickens wrote ''Bleak House'', '' Hard Times'', ''Little Dorrit'' and ''A Tale of Two Cities''. He also put on a ...
*
Bleak House, Broadstairs
Bleak House (originally known as Fort House) is a prominent house on the cliff overlooking the North Foreland and Viking Bay in Broadstairs, Kent. It was built around 1801 and then substantially extended, doubling in size, in 1901. The house was ...
*
Ware, Hertfordshire
Ware is a town in Hertfordshire, England close to the county town of Hertford. It is also a civil parishes in England, civil parish in East Hertfordshire district.
Location
The town lies on the north–south A10 road (Great Britain), A10 road ...
, the first British town to hold a yearly
Dickensian evening
References
External links
Official websiteCharles Dickens Museum on The National Virtual MuseumList of art works at the museumCharles Dickens Museum on Museums London directory of museums
{{authority control
Houses in the London Borough of Camden
Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
Dickens Museum, London
Grade I listed houses in London
Grade I listed museum buildings
Museums established in 1925
Literary museums in London
Museums in the London Borough of Camden
Historic house museums in London
1925 establishments in England
Charities based in London
Buildings and structures in Holborn